This talk will examine the enduring impact of Purple Rain on popular culture, exploring the ways in which the film has influenced both musicians and filmmakers since its release in 1984. It will address how it operated to solidify Prince’s status in the pantheon of rock stardom and highlight the film’s role in influencing music video culture and rock music films for decades to come.

Kirsty Fairclough is Professor of Screen Studies at the School of Digital Arts (SODA), Manchester Metropolitan University, UK, and Chair of the Board of the Manchester Jazz Festival.

She has published widely on popular culture and is the co-editor of Prince and Popular Music (Bloomsbury), The Music Documentary: Acid Rock to Electropop (Routledge), The Arena Concert: Music, Media and Mass Entertainment (Bloomsbury), and Music/Video: Forms, Aesthetics, Media. New York, (Bloomsbury) and author of the forthcoming Beyoncé: Celebrity Feminism and Popular Culture (Bloomsbury) and co-author of American Cinema: A Contemporary Introduction (Palgrave).

Kirsty lectures internationally on popular culture, feminism, and representations of women most notably at The Royal College of Music, Stockholm, The University of Copenhagen, Second City, Chicago, Columbia College Chicago, Middle Tennessee State University, Unisinos Brazil, and Bucknell University, Pennsylvania.